


Hey, puppy

by Ukhae (Drowninginworkbutstill)



Category: Before Crisis: Final Fantasy VII, Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Angst, First Meeting, M/M, Past Animal Abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-30
Updated: 2020-04-30
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:00:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23918701
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Drowninginworkbutstill/pseuds/Ukhae
Summary: "You remind me of a puppy I used to have. I bought it from the slums.”"And what happened to it?"“My father shot it.”
Relationships: Reno & Rufus Shinra, Reno/Rufus Shinra
Comments: 2
Kudos: 38





	Hey, puppy

Nervous, wiry hands played with the buttons of the Turk uniform. Reno had just been told by Tseng that he was to see someone who was even higher than Tseng himself, who was in charge of overseeing Turk operations. This person was apparently called Rufus Shinra, and was the vice-president of Shinra. From what rumours Reno had heard, he was a cruel sadist who loved to watch people suffer, always cold and condescending. Thus, Reno was definitely not looking forward to this visit. He knocked on the door and entered without asking for permission.

Then again, this was Reno. Knocking on the door was rare enough, let alone waiting for confirmation to enter.

Reno found Rufus Shinra gripping his blond hair with one hand, another gripping a fountain pen so tightly it looked like it could break. As his face was down, Reno could not see what would most likely be a face contorted into a grimace of pain. Reno switched off the too bright light above them, making the room dim with the stray sunlight that filtered through the grand red curtains.

"Rufus?" Reno called out softly, throwing away all formalities. The man seemed too young to be in charge of such heavy duties. "Are you alright?"

A blue eye glared at him through a hand that gripped his head, and a hand fumbled through a drawer to search for what seemed to be migraine pills. The trembling hand could not get a good grip, and Reno found himself rushing forward to help, opening the bottle to press the pills in a pale, smooth hand. The shaking hand moved up to pale lips, and Rufus gulped the pills down painfully, before leaning his head on the cool desk.

"Who are you?"

Reno startled with when he heard that calm and biting tone. "I'm Reno, Sir. The new Turk." Reno bit his lips as he stood next to Rufus, contemplating what to do. He finally decided to seat on the desk, leaning over to massage Rufus's head with long fingers.

Rufus groaned, turning his head to look at a deeply concentrating Reno who had stuck a bit of tongue out at the side of his mouth. "What are you doing?"

"Making ya feel better," Reno explained as his hands worked magic. He grinned down cheekily at the young

Shinra, eyes twinkling. "I get hangovers all the time so I know this helps."

Rufus closed his eyes and relaxing, seemingly asleep with his deep and regular breathing. "You're from the slums, aren't you."

Reno flinched from the unexpected sentence. Well, he had no doubt anyone could tell with his slum accent and sluggish looks. After all, a slum rat wearing posh clothes was like a wolf donning on sheep's skin, one was still a slum rat, and it was telling in many ways. He removed his hands from Rufus's soft hair. "Sorry, I shouldn't have touched you." Surely, the young boss would be disgusted from filth touching him. Reno dropped his hands to his lap, wondering if this was already the end of his career. He looked up at the ceiling and sighed. Tseng did warn him about being formal and well-behaved. Was he going to get shot in the head? Should he try to run now? Reno blew out a puff of air at his stray strands of hair hanging in front of his hair, making them flutter like sprayed blood.

Rufus smirked in amusement and pulled a hand back to his head."Don't be stupid, dog. Finish what you started."

Reno blinked in confusion. What?

"Didn't you hear me?" Rufus barked, and Reno moved into action again, a confused frown on his face, making Rufus chuckle.

"You remind me of a puppy I used to have. I bought it from the slums," Rufus explained as his eyes fluttered shut again at Reno's gentle, magical hands. "His eyes were like yours."

_ Bright and happy, looking at me directly… at who I was, just a human being… _

"And what happened to it?" Reno hummed as he massaged Rufus's head.  _ He has really smooth hair… _

"My Father shot it," Rufus growled.

Reno paused momentarily, before resuming. Well, that escalated quickly. Even if it was a slum dog which could have had diseases, did President Shinra have to shoot it to remove it from his son? He could imagine it now, a young Rufus beaming down at the bundle of fur in his arms, pristine white coat dirtied with mud from the puppy, and soon, with the blood of the creature he just fell in love with…

Reno shook his head, trying to remove the devastated look he imagined on Rufus's face from his head. "I see."

Rufus stared up at Reno in contemplation for a bit. "You look every bit like him. A mangy stray."

Reno tried to look insulted and failed. Which was strange. Usually, people said it with scorn and disgust, and Reno retaliated with words or blows. This time, watching Rufus's sad eyes and hearing his nostalgic tone, Reno couldn't help but sympathize with Rufus. He had kept a pet spider for weeks once and one day it just disappeared… Well, Reno knew it wasn't the same, but still. Rufus had meant no offence, and the blunt words made Reno falter.

Rufus sat up, and he dragged his hand through Reno's unruly red locks while Reno was still leant over. Rufus gave a little sad smile as Reno scrambled backwards in shock. "I, um. I'm Reno. I ain't no dog," Reno said quietly, looking at Rufus with a look that that stray made when his Father lifted his gun.

Rufus covered the distance between them by standing up abruptly, pulling Reno into a tight hug, running a hand through bright red hair again. Reno tensed immediately, and Rufus let him go.

"You're right. You're not that dog, I apologise," Rufus hung his head, making Reno unable to see his expression, and turned his back on Reno. "You may leave."

Reno felt guilty suddenly, and he reached out a hand, but he decided against it, letting it drop. He exited the room quietly, casting a look back at that lonely back.

**Author's Note:**

> Written in 2013, but I decided to upload it here. I hope you guys enjoyed!
> 
> There are so many FFVII fandoms to tag, I wasn't sure which one to use. I wrote this when I was playing crisis core!


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